Morocco’s Prime Minister Saad Eddine El Othmani met Friday with professionals in the tourism sector, which has been severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
The Tourism Ministry has announced it is carrying out studies on the measures related to the financial, social and administrative aspects of the tourism sector.
Minister of Tourism and Civil Aviation Nadia Fettah Alaoui had revealed that 95 percent of the hotels and tourist accommodation units in the Kingdom are closed due to the novel coronavirus outbreak.
She pointed to a report by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) that revealed a drop in air traffic in Morocco by about five million passengers, which will incur financial and job losses on the sector.
“The tourism sector has benefited from the measures taken by the Kingdom, since nearly 70 percent of employees in the sector registered in the National Social Security Fund (CNSS) have received monthly allowances,” she said.
Informal sector workers and businesses have benefited from other support measures, the tourism minister added.
At the legislative level, she further noted, the House of Representatives adopted a bill to keep tourism businesses afloat and guarantee consumer rights.
The bill outlines special provisions for travel contracts, tourist stays and passenger air transport contracts.
Under the bill, tourism service providers may reimburse their customers via an “IOU” (I Owe You), offering a similar or equivalent service without any rate increase.
